Tag Archives: colorado authors

As with all of the installments of the ‘Once Upon a Reality’ series, I will be donating 10% of my author royalties of To Dwell in Dreams to a corresponding charity of my choice.

As this novel deals heavily with the ways in which Lyn, the main character, is unprepared for motherhood even as a young married woman, and makes some drastic and tragic choices based on the lack of understanding in her own circles, I have decided that the donated royalties of To Dwell in Dreams will be sent to the Gabriel Project in Denver. The Gabriel Project, through each of the Gabriel ‘Houses’ offers “spiritual and emotional support. In addition we help mothers with baby items such as infant and children’s clothes, blankets, diapers, wipes, toiletries, formula. We can also help pregnant moms and new moms with personal care items. We help with referrals for resources including housing, employment, education, parenting programs, etc.”

I am proud and excited to be able to help support the Gabriel Project through Lyn’s story. Don’t forget, you can purchase To Dwell in Dreamsthrough the publisher (and get a free ebook with the purchase of the paperback!), Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or a signed copy directly from me.

Want to start from the beginning of the Once Upon a Reality series? Kristen A. Scearce has given ‘Till the Last Petal Falls a five-star review:

During my Psychology classes in college, we discussed how various characters have psychological issues: popular cartoon characters, the cast of “Winnie the Pooh,” and the vast majority of the Disney Princesses. Belle is no exception, and this book explores that idea beautifully, no pun intended.

Jolee answers a Craigslist ad which sounds too good to be true, and she finds herself in the mountains of Aspen, tutoring a shut-in with some very serious issues of his own. As time goes by, she learns [more] and more about this man, and most of it is not good. However, she sticks by him, hoping to “fix” him with her love.

Sound like a recipe for disaster?

I used to teach a rehabilitation class for men convicted of domestic violence, and this book definitely delves into that dynamic head-first. It’s a real eye-opener into the lives of those involved in those situations, from both sides of the coin as well as an outsider’s perspective. Comparing it to the story of “Beauty and the Beast” really adds a whole new layer to it, as most of us either grew up with that story/movie or fell in love with it because of our kids/grandkids/etc. It’s a crazy thought, but the more you think about it, the more you realize Belle suffered from Stockholm syndrome as well as battered-woman syndrome, and that HEA Disney ending is not the one generally associated with those situations.

Bravo to the author for writing this cross-examination of a beloved children’s story and shedding some light on this serious issue while also maintaining a gripping novel.

As always, I appreciate any and all reviews of my work, posted on Amazon, B&N or Goodreads- it helps me as an author to see what I’m getting right, and what I still need to work on with my next project.

At this point, I have written 26,225 words of the Painting the Roses Red project, which translates to about seven chapters in a end goal of 40. This is a much bigger project for me, but now that I’ve started it I’m really pumped for it. It’s really done the trick of putting me in a different place and challenging what I can do as a writer within my personal favorite genre: fantasy. Hopefully I’ll be able to finish this month with at least ten chapters finished and typed up of the final draft- leaving me only thirty to go after that- and starting next month I’ll be actively seeking beta readers to go chapter by chapter as I update them to make the editing process go that much more smoothly in the end.

Also starting to file away the names of potential fantasy agents and small presses for when this project is completely finished- through I’m pretty sure we’ll have at least another year or so to go before then.

In the impoverished village of Kakamega, Kenya, seven missionaries from Colorado arrive to dig wells, pray, and share the culture of the indigenous Luhya tribe. Along for the ride is Julia, a senior in high school hoping to leave her own mark on the world through her service in Christ’s name. Little does she know, she will bring more to this trip than she will ever realize.